Phoenix Fire
by Shin-no-Nekochan
Summary: On FictionPress, ASeptemberRose created a story called Element and this is my own epilogue to her Finale, Episode 100. It's a lot of fluffiness surrounding her main pairing, a shounenai couple that was separated in the final battle.


PHOENIX FIRE

A One-Shot Fanfiction of Element by ASeptemberRose

Focus: Taisuke & Raiden

_A Phoenix's brilliant beauty is rivaled by none and envied by all, but every so often the Phoenix reaches a trying time when it must shed its beauty and begin anew. And, it is said, that the Phoenix's downy feathers become more beautiful with each rebirth.__ If such is the case with love, how do you rekindle a love that is not remembered?_

"-"

"Ri-kun!"

The words echoed in Ri's mind; it seemed like ages since he'd last heard them escape Tai's lips. The past few months of school had been trying ones for Ri, not because of the schoolwork itself, but because of having to guard every action and every word he displayed to Taisuke. After all, Ri was still deeply aware of a relationship that Taisuke didn't - couldn't - remember.

"Hey Tai-kun, what's up?" Ri replied cheerfully as he turned around in the school hallway.

The slightly taller redhead stopped in front of Ri and looked down at him with those steel-gray eyes, about to answer Ri's very question.

_Gods, I wish he wouldn't do that . . ._ Ri thought to himself, barely containing the blush he felt creeping towards his cheeks. Every time Tai looked down at him from that angle Ri envisioned the many kisses he'd shared with Tai . . . it seemed like all that was an eternity ago and it always made him so nostalgic.

". . . and I was wondering if you'd like to come," Tai finished.

Ri blinked. _He's gonna think I'm deaf if I keep this up!_ "S- sorry? Come where?" Ri asked shyly.

"To my house. For dinner. My parents are dying to meet the infamous 'Ri-kun'," Tai laughed, relaxing a little.

"Oh!" Ri laughed too, looking more than a little embarrassed. _I'd forgotten about Tai's parents . . . Life restored them, too._

Before either of them could continue the conversation, the bell rung signaling that school was about to start.

"Just think about it and I'll talk to you after school, okay?" Taisuke requested as he walked backwards towards his room.

"Sure," Ri nodded in agreement and walked towards his room as well. _I can only hope he doesn't take me to his room._

Ri shuddered at the memories that came flooding back to him. No, Death was no longer a factor in Ri's relationship with Tai; Ri knew he could make it work out this time, like any normal relationship . . . he just had to figure out _how_.

_Normal,_ Ri chuckled as he sat down, _I doubt that I'll ever be able to have a 'normal' relationship again, even if it _was_ a girl I was interested in and not Tai_.

"-"

"So, you'll come after practice on Friday?" Tai wondered aloud to Ri as they walked away from school. This had become ritual after their first month of being friends; it gave Ri an excuse to prod Tai for all the information that Ri already knew about Tai, but of course Ri couldn't let Tai know that.

Ri smiled broadly at Tai. "No problem. I'll take a shower at the school after soccer and head straight to your house once I'm presentable again."

Tai looked puzzled for a moment, then returned the smile. "That's right! I gave you my address right before break so we could write to each other!"

"Yup," Ri nodded.

Tai looked forward again in the direction they were heading when Ri saw a serene, serious look take over Tai's carefree features.

"Is something wrong, Tai-kun?" Ri asked. _I wish I could read his thoughts . . . or even get an idea of what he thought about these days . . . what he sees in me._

Tai stopped walking and turned to Ri. "Could we, maybe, sit and talk for a little bit?" Tai sputtered out, motioning to a bench on the sidewalk they'd just passed.

Ri shrugged his shoulders and walked over to the bench, sitting down and watching Taisuke do the same. "What's on your mind?"

"Ri-kun . . . I've been meaning to ask you for a long time . . . but the first day of school . . . you acted like we were the best of friends. You never once brought it up after that and I thought you might have been out of your mind that morning or something, but . . . but I can't tell myself that's the truth anymore. I- I was hoping _you_ could tell me the truth," Taisuke explained very quickly, blushing furiously and not looking at Ri once the whole time.

Ri sighed. _Well . . . I knew that'd come back to haunt me one of these days._ "The truth, Tai-kun, is that I was perfectly sane. However, I had something like an epiphany that morning . . . I felt like I'd just woken up from a horrible nightmare and the sight of everything - the grass, the school, my friends - made me so happy . . . It must have been some kind of past-life thing that happened when I saw you, because I have memories of us being friends but I got the hint that you don't have those same memories and that's why I didn't press the issue. I'm sorry for scaring you like that."

"No, you didn't scare me . . ." Tai replied, "I was sure you'd bumped your head or something and I was just concerned about you." Tai clasped his hands to his mouth, but Ri had heard loud and clear.

"You were worried about me? But you didn't even know me at the time!" Ri exclaimed.

Tai blushed and didn't hide it. "I can't explain it . . . but when you started saying all those things . . . I wanted to remember what you expected me to remember. But I guess I don't need to anymore, huh?"

Ri balked, "What?"

"Come on, you can't hide it from me," Tai started speaking in a whisper, "You and Kakeru-kun, right?"

_I can't believe what I'm hearing . . . Tai is jealous of Kakeru?_ "You . . . you think that Kakeru and I . . . are . . . in a relationship?" Ri asked tentatively.

"Well, aren't you?" Tai looked like a deer caught in headlights. "I mean . . . Kakeru-kun hides it really well, but you . . ." he spoke in a very panicked voice.

_So he was only really sure about me. _Ri relaxed a little, but kept his voice down and chuckled, "Am I that obvious?"

Tai looked even more surprised than before. "You mean you - but not Kakeru -"

Ri shook his head. "Kakeru-kun and Jurei-chan are a couple and I would never in a million years get between them, even if I did like Kakeru-kun."

"I was so sure that it was some kind of triangle thing I didn't understand-" Tai protested.

"Nope," Ri insisted. "But how did you pin me down and not Kakeru?"

"I dunno . . ." Tai shrugged his shoulders. "I guess . . . Something told me I should have remembered what you were saying. The way you said 'us' --" _I could've sworn I heard . . . _love_ . . . in his voice . . . like we'd dated or something!_

"I'm really sorry about that --" Ri began to say, but Tai cut him off.

Tai had leaned over and was looking straight into Ri's face, utter shock written across his face. "Ri-kun, you're blushing . . ."

_Oh no!_ Ri hid his face in his hands. "Tai . . . kun . . . Please . . . I-- You don't want me to say any more."

Tai reached out and put both of his hands on Ri's, trying to pull them away from Ri's face. "Ri-kun . . . What on earth do you mean by that? Ri, if you remember something I don't . . . I mean, it may have only been a past life memory but you seem to be pretty caught up in it now--"

"But that doesn't matter, Tai!" Ri bawled as he looked down at the ground with his hands in Tai's. "I can't just tell you what I remember because that won't make things go back to how they used to be! To how I remember them! To how . . . how I want them to be . . . how I want _us_ to be." _Great, now I've ruined everything!_

"Ri . . ." _He called me Tai . . . Why do I get the feeling he was the only one who ever called me that?_ "Ri-kun . . . I want to remember, I really do . . . It just seems that I can't." _These feelings on the other hand--_

Ri started to run as fast as he could, but Tai was fast on his heels.

"Ri, no WAIT!"

Tears were pouring down the sides of his face. _Tai won't ever remember me . . . It was pointless to even dream -_

Strong arms had caught Ri and held him firmly so he couldn't run any further. Very slowly, Tai's hands made their way across Ri's chest until the hold became an embrace. Then, Tai put his head into the niche of Ri's neck. Then he leaned back against the tree they'd stopped nearby, pulling Ri close to him as he did so.

Ri was blushing furiously, but smiling. "Tai . . . kun . . ." He leaned into Tai's touch and moaned ever so slightly.

"Ri-chan . . ."

Ri closed his eyes and more tears flowed down his cheeks. _Please . . . just keep saying my name . . ._

"Do you like that name?"

_I must have said that out loud_. "Yes," Ri breathed throatily. "Only you have ever called me that."

Tai spun Ri around so that he was looking down into Ri's eyes with one hand on his cheek. He rubbed away Ri's tears with his thumb while whispering, "I want it to stay that way, Ri-chan."

Ri smiled through his blush again and gasped, "Tai-kun . . . does this mean . . . do you remember?"

Tai didn't answer, but brought his face to Ri's and enveloped his mouth in a kiss. _I think I remember this . . . a part of me does, anyway . . . the feeling . . . that smell of vanilla . . . and it being with Ri . . ._

Ri's mind exploded and he sunk into Tai's embrace, drunk on the emotions of ecstasy running through him; it had been so long since Tai had kissed him this passionately - or kissed him at all, for that matter. It tasted sweeter than he remembered. _Gods how I missed this . . ._

Tai released Ri's mouth, but kept his nose touching Ri's as he cupped Ri's blushing face with his hands. "Ri-chan . . . I don't think I can ever be who you remember, but I hope I can be someone you won't forget . . . if you'll let me into your life again."

Ri wrapped his arms around Tai, clinging to Tai and crying into his shirt. "I won't ever forget you, Tai-kun . . . and I don't ever want to."

Tai sighed, content with that burden off his shoulders; he was much more relaxed and at peace than he'd felt in a long time. "Does this mean we're . . .?"

"Dating?"

"Boyfriends?"

Ri laughed. "Whatever you want to call us, Tai-kun, as long as I'm with you. I missed you so much."

Tai hugged Ri, rocking slightly to the left and right as he ran his fingers through Ri's spiky hair. "Somehow, Ri-chan, I can say this and mean it . . . I've missed you, too."

The sun began to set and Ri couldn't help but notice the way it reflected in Taisuke's red hair; the dancing colors made it look like flames. Ri smiled brightly at Tai and tilted his head up for another wonderful kiss from his fire-haired love.

Tai met Ri's luscious lips and wondered how he could have managed to forget someone like Ri._I may not remember you, Ri-chan, but my body does . . . and that's good enough for me._


End file.
